Difficulty: Challenger (Level 2)
The torch is one of the most well-known symbols of the Olympics. Sporting legends around the world pass off the torch in a relay across the world, promoting peace and cooperation among nations.
This year, 11,000 different torch-bearers will carry the flame. The flame is lit several months before the Games begin. It burns until the closing ceremony at the end of the Olympics.
The flame is now an essential part of the modern Olympics. However, it wasn’t introduced until the 1928 Amsterdam Games.
Since then, the flame has gone to some fascinating places across the globe. These include the top of Mount Everest – the tallest mountain in the world – the North Pole, and even underwater to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. But it is always lit in Olympia, Greece, where the Olympics originated.
The torch’s design changes for each Games. It is created by an artist from the host country. This year’s torch for the Paris Games is silver. It has a thick middle and is thinner by the handle and flame.
Make your own Olympic torch
Materials
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red, orange and yellow tissue paper
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glue, colourful tape or a stapler
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white paper plate
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optional: markers or tinfoil
Instructions
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Colour one side of your paper plate (the slightly rounded side). To make it look more authentic, you can tape silver tinfoil on it to match the torch for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
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Roll the plate into a cone shape. Make sure the coloured part is on the outside of the cone. Tape it shut or ask a parent to staple the plate to keep this shape.
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Next, take four or five sheets of tissue paper. Stack them on top of each other. Grab the stack of sheets from the middle and squeeze and twist the tissue paper to give it a flowery shape.
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Insert the tissue paper into the tail of the cone and pull it so most of it sticks out the open end. Attach it with tape.
Learning a new sport
Materials
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a computer where you can find videos of sports
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pen and paper
Instructions
1. The Olympic Games will feature many interesting sports, such as skateboarding, taekwondo, trampoline, and water polo. Choose a sport you are unfamiliar with and find a video of a match online.
2. Without reading about it first, try to understand as much as possible just by watching it. You can watch with another person and try to figure it out together.
3. Use these questions to help you observe the sport:
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Is this a team or individual sport?
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What does the court, field or arena look like?
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What equipment do the players use?
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How does a competitor or team score points? How do they win?
4. After watching one or two matches, look up the sport and its rules to see how much you understood.
